Cavaliers: Anderson Varejao out again vs. Hawks

Cavaliers coach Byron Scott is optimistic center Anderson Varejao's season is not over.

The 6-foot-11, 260-pounder has missed the last 10 games with a "contusion" on his right knee. Tuesday was the day the Cavs had hoped Varejao would return to the practice court.

When Scott arrived at Cleveland Clinic Courts, he was told Varejao would not practice and he'd miss the Atlanta game at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Quicken Loans Arena.

"I hope I'm not talking like it's long term or for the season," Scott said. "I'm still trying to be optimistic that he'll play. I just don't know when. The one thing I have to do, because he means so much to the team, is carry on and coach the guys that are here.

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"I miss him every day. I'm still optimistic that he can play this year ... until the doctors give me a reason to think differently."

Swingman C.J. Miles missed practice on Tuesday with back spasms.

"We're hopeful he can play (Wednesday), but we don't know at this point," Scott said.

The Cavs coach said shooting guard Daniel Gibson returned to practice. He's missed the last five games with a concussion.

"He did go five-on-five," Scott said. "We'll see how he feels tomorrow."

Forward Luke Walton is still excused from the team dealing with a personal problem.

Scott said he has no idea if Varejao has suffered a setback. He claims to have not spoken to Cavs athletic trainer Max Benton or Cavs team physician Dr. Richard Parker.

"I'm disappointed because he was having an All-Star-type year," Scott said. "You want him to play because he's the type of player he is and how important he is to our team.

"This is three years straight he ended up getting hurt. I'm more disappointed for him than I am anybody. I know how hard he works and plays. I see the frustration with him. The biggest thing is forget basketball. Is he OK?"

Two seasons ago, he missed considerable time with a torn tendon in his ankle. Last year, he was sidelined with a wrist injury.

Scott doesn't know how long Varejao will be sidelined.

"I'm not going to speculate," he said. "I saw him this morning, and he's disappointed. He wants to be out here playing. That's his joy. I'm hurting for him."

Varejao, 30, was kneed in the right knee in the Toronto game on Dec. 18. Scott said he's disappointed and frustrated they've had their entire team together for just a handful of games this season.

"We would like to have all these guys together, but we haven't," he said.

Cavs guard Kyrie Irving said not having Varejao hurts in many different ways.

"(We miss) his effort and intelligence as a basketball player," he said. "We miss his leadership. He's been beneficial this season with Tyler (Zeller) and Tristan (Thompson) growing. We got 14 and 14 from him every night. We're missing that right now."